


Type: Full

by TheTacticianAlchemist



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Aged-Up Character(s), Cliche, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Mutual Pining, Past Child Abuse, this is going to be so cliche and self-indulgent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-08
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-09-07 07:56:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8789800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTacticianAlchemist/pseuds/TheTacticianAlchemist
Summary: A year after Lillie leaves for Kanto to care for her mother, Gladion comes to challenge Moon for her seat as Champion--as well as to give her a Type: Null, and to deliver a letter from his sister.[Gladion x Moon/f!MC, written on the fly and probably full of romance tropes and crush cliches, let's be real. Also may be turning into something actually serious whoops.]





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> *has two other, if not more, writing projects to work on, is busy almost every day, is in Japan for goodness's sake* hey why not write about my favorite pairing in Sun and Moon
> 
> please think of Moon however you would like, I probably won't generally be talking about her appearance, and if I do it'll be generic Moon. (I would use my own adorable avatar but that makes it so much less approachable.) her pokemon, however, will mostly follow those used for my playthrough of Sun. also, their ages probably won't be mentioned, but I'm aging her, Hau, and Lillie to 17 or so while Gladion is two or three years older.
> 
> don't expect any regular updates, especially since I have only a few certain things that I want to happen in this fic (but do expect flustered, blushing Gladion and somewhat oblivious Moon)

Moon sees the sweat beading on Gladion’s brow as he recalls Lucario. Four of his five pokemon have fainted now, but he still has a determined set to his eyes. He’s even smiling, which is a sight Moon still can’t get used to. She wonders if she could ever get used to it.

“Still as strong as ever, huh?” Gladion says as he pulls out his last pokeball and presses the button to enlarge it.

“Maybe,” Moon says with a smile, recalling her Bewear with a quick word of thanks. She puts his ball back in her bag and pulls out Decidueye’s. “You’ve never won a battle against me, remember?”

“Maybe today’s the day!” Gladion calls, tossing his pokeball into the air and releasing Silvally. The synthetic pokemon releases a roar, the feathers on its head glowing red.

Moon doesn’t bother to change her decision—she already knew he’d pull this stunt. She tosses her pokeball and Decidueye appears, smoothing out his feathers as he alights on the ground.

“Multi-attack!” Gladion yells, and flames cloak Silvally as it rushes forward, its claws digging into the ground.

“Dodge, then Spirit Shackle!”

Decidueye leaps into the air, flapping his wings to gain height. Even though he used to be a flying type, actual flying has never been his strong suit, especially long distances. But he’s a master at using airspace to evade and attack from; when he soars over Silvally by at least a meter, he aims a quill-arrow from his wing and fills it with ghostly power. He releases the arrow, and it hits Silvally square in the side, causing it to freeze up momentarily.

“Razor Leaf!” Moon calls when Decidueye lands on the field.

“Air Slash!”

Silvally whips its head, sending a gust of air toward her partner pokemon. The air slices straight through Decidueye’s attack, and he only has a moment to evade—the attack clips his shoulder, and he cries out.

“Shit,” Moon hisses, and she taps the Z-Crystal on her bracelet. “Decidueye, let’s go!”

Decidueye leaps into the air as Moon preforms the dance for his Z-Move. She catches sight of Gladion pointing and calling out orders to Silvally, but for the moment, she’s so caught up in the battle that she can’t hear anything but her heartbeat pounding in her ears—at times like these, she thinks that maybe she can hear Decidueye’s, too.

Decidueye leaps into the air, his flight hindered by his injured wing, but he’s still fast enough to avoid another Air Slash. At the apex of his flight, he extends his wings and releases a horde of quills controlled by shadows. Decidueye dives, the arrows whizzing down after him. Silvally scrambles in attempt to dodge the attack, but Decidueye’s arrows never miss. Silvally falls when the arrows hit, and for a moment it can’t be seen amidst the purplish smoke rising from the attack.

Gladion hurries to his pokemon’s side, kneeling beside it and patting its flank. He says something too quiet to catch, and Silvally lets out a soft cry—though Moon can swear that the pokemon is smiling in its own way.

While Gladion returns Silvally, Moon gives Decidueye some well-deserved poke-beans, and he croons out his delight when she pats his head. She puts her hands on her hips as Gladion approaches and says, “Aren’t you a little busy with Aether to be coming all the way out here to challenge me?”

He shrugs and looks away for a moment, one hand in his pocket while the other rubs at a spot on the back of his neck. “To be honest, Wicke handles most of it all. I just make sure Aether goes back to what it was supposed to be. Most of the staff’s main priority has always been conservation, so it’s not too hard.”

“Still, it must keep you busy most of the time.” She smiles, and before she can stop to think, she adds, “I’m glad you came to see me.”

When she realizes just what she said, she feels her cheeks start to tingle. She busies herself with giving Decidueye another pat, but all her partner pokemon does is give her a flat look.

Gladion coughs. “Actually, I came here for a couple reasons.” He reaches into his travel pack and pulls out a pokeball. “I was hoping you’d take care of this guy.”

He holds it out, and Moon, stunned, stares at it for a moment. The pokeball is nothing remarkable, just shiny and new, barely handled—but it’s the fact that _Gladion_ is the one holding it out to her that’s surprising.

He sees her shock as hesitation and holds out the pokeball a bit further. “This is another Type: Null. I figured if anyone could get it to evolve, it’d be you.”

“Me?” Moon asks, taking the pokeball. Her fingers trace over the warm metal.

“You are the Champion of Alola, after all,” Gladion says, putting one hand on his hip. “We just went over this, remember?”

Moon pauses. “Me, really?”

“Yes really, you numbskull.”

That makes her laugh, and her nerves leave her along with the sound. “Wow, Gladion, I don’t know what to say.”

He looks away and does that odd gesture over his face, like he’s trying to avoid her gaze. “A simple ‘thank you’ is just fine.”

“Thank you,” she says, and when he makes eye contact with her, he quickly looks away again.

Moon enlarges the pokeball and opens it to let out Type: Null. Decidueye croons out a hello as the new pokemon takes in its surroundings. Null seems smaller than she remembers Gladion’s being, but otherwise it looks virtually the same, with its front claws mismatching its hind paws, its odd fishlike tail, and its ugly bronze helmet obscuring its head.

Moon’s heart immediately pangs with sympathy, and she kneels down in front of it. It backs up a step, scratching at the floor with its claws and letting out a small whine.

“Hey sweetie, it’s okay,” she says, reaching into her bag and pulling out a couple poke-beans. She holds them flat in her palm, waiting. Type: Null steps forward, sniffing, and the sound reminds her of Lycanroc’s sniffing, but a lot more echo-y. Then, it puts its head over her hand and she feels hot breath on her fingers. Through a small hole underneath the front of the helmet, Null’s pink tongue pokes out and laps up the beans. It crunches them up, taking longer than it should due to the helmet’s restrictions, and then its fishlike tail wags back and forth. It barks at her, as if asking for more.

Moon laughs. “Okay, okay, just one more—ow!” Null comes too close, knocking her head with its helmet. Moon falls backward onto the floor, and Null stands over her like an excited Growlithe would to its owner. Moon rubs her head, but scratches Null’s flank regardless.

She tries to sit up, pushing the pokemon back. She glances up at Gladion in time to catch his smile—which vanishes from his face when he sees her look.

Moon fishes another bean from her bag and holds it out. “Gentle, Nully… Nully?” She frowns thoughtfully as the pokemon licks up the treat. “Nellie? Is Nellie a good name for you, girl?”

“Type: Null doesn’t have a gender.”

“I wasn’t asking you,” Moon says, ignoring Gladion for the moment. She scratches Type: Null some more. “Girl? Boy? One nod for girl, two nods for boy. Or three for neither, whatever works.”

Type: Null tips its head curiously, and Decidueye lets out a few hoots. Null wags its tail, and then dips its head once, keeping its eyes trained on Moon’s.

“A girl? Is Nellie an okay name?” At this, the pokemon barks playfully and nearly whacks Moon in the head again with its helmet. She laughs, but carefully keeps a hand on the cool metal. “Okay, Nellie it is. Glad to have you on the team, girl.”

Nellie barks some more, and Moon gives her a few more pats before recalling her to her pokeball. Moon does the same to Decidueye, and then, she’s left sitting on the floor of the Champion’s room, Gladion watching her with an amused expression.

“Leave it up to you to come up with some silly name,” he says, extending his hand. Moon takes it, and he helps her to her feet. He lets go quickly, and then takes out a small cylindrical case from his travel pack.

“These are memories for when Nell—Null—evolves into Silvally, so you can change its type.” He puts the case in her hand. “Be careful, there’s only one more set in the world besides mine.”

 _A third?_ Moon thinks, and she remembers reading in the Aether labs something about there being three Type: Fulls. She’s about to ask, but then, Gladion pulls out something else from his pack: An opened envelope.

“This is the other reason I came,” he says. “This is Lillie’s latest letter. She’s asking the both of us to come to Kanto.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to end it at 1.5k and then whoops, an extra 1k happened and I hope Gladion is in character whoops
> 
> I ended up writing so much Hau this chapter? why is he so precious

_Dear Gladion & Moon,_

_How have the two of you been? I know I write letters to each of you often, and you send back pictures and video messages, but I always need to check. I think about the two of you, and Hau and of course the professors quite often._

_I hope this doesn’t seem too sudden, but I would like to invite the two of you to Kanto. By no means do I want to rush you, but some incredible things have happened that can only be described in person. But I don’t think there should be harm in waiting for this letter to reach you and for you two to come._

_By all means, bring along Hau if he is able to come. I know he is busy with the training Mr. Hala is putting him through, though, so I would rather he focus on himself. Please make sure he knows that._

_You’re welcome to come at any time. We are at Cerulean Cape, north of Cerulean City._

_Love,_

_Lillie_

Moon peers at the letter for at least the tenth time. Lillie’s script is as loopy as ever, but she can see more than a few mistakes in the ink, as if the girl was in a hurry while writing. Normally, Lillie’s letters filled entire pages with minute details about her day, and questions about Moon’s pokemon, family, and friends.

“Why are you being so vague,” Moon mutters, leaning back in her desk chair. “What happened?”

She would try to call Lillie on the internet, but it was around two in the morning in Kanto, so she just sends a message instead. But she isn’t expecting too much to come from it—Gladion already called her, and he reported that she had been extremely vague, but that was all that had been out of the ordinary.

Moon absently reaches down to scratch her Lycanroc’s mane. The dog lets out a cute yawn and stretches languidly across the rug before going back to chewing on her bone (which isn’t Marowak’s, Moon made sure of that).

“I guess I’ll figure it out when I get there.” Moon sighs, then stands and stretches.

A knock sounds at the door, and her mother pokes her head into the room. Elenora is already used to Nellie, but she still raises an eyebrow when she sees the sharp-clawed pokemon laying on the bed. However, she doesn’t comment. “Have you packed yet?”

“I’m not leaving for a couple days, Mom.” Moon pats her shoulder bag. “Besides, I have most everything in here already.”

“Yes, but you should bring your father something from Alola.” Elenora puts her hands on her hips. “It would do him good to get some vacation time to come out here. He could use some more convincing.”

“I have this,” Moon says, picking up the strange souvenir on her desk. “I got it at the Thrifty Megamart on Akala.”

“Somehow, I don’t think that will cut it.” Elenora laughs. “Anyway, I wanted to ask you—you should invite that Gladion boy you’re going with to dinner here tomorrow.”

Moon nearly drops the strange souvenir. “W-what, why?” she stammers.

“I just want to see what sort of boy you’re going to be traveling with, is all,” her mother says. There’s a sly smile on her face, and Moon suddenly wants to bolt out the window.

“I-I’ll send him a text,” she lies, picking up her phone. Elenora rolls her eyes.

“It’s almost time for bed. Please bring your pokemon inside, by the way—why aren’t you keeping an eye on Bewear, anyway?”

“Bewear knows how to be gentle! I taught him!”

* * *

 

“Whaaaaat?” Hau puts down his malasada on his plate—actually puts it down. “Lillie invited you and Gladion to Kanto, but not _me_?”

“She did, though!” Moon waves her hands. She lowers her voice when she sees a couple a table over cast a glance toward them. “She sent the letter to me and Gladion, yeah, but she said she didn’t want to pressure you to come when you’ve got so much to do with Hala. Besides, if something really bad had happened or anything, I’m sure she’d be a lot more out there about it.”

“Hmmm,” he pouts, resting his cheek on his hand. He picks up his malasada and takes a bite. “I guess she has a point,” he says, mouth full. He swallows. “Tutu is making me go through a lot of different types of training. I’ll have to be responsible for the whole island when he retires.”

“It’s not like you can’t do that, though. You’re a strong trainer, and good with people and pokemon. I’m sure you’ll be just fine—better than fine, even.”

Hau pauses, and then he snorts, a wide grin covering his face. “Thanks, Moon. You always know what to say.” He sighs, but doesn’t seem sad so much as just disappointed. “I can’t just run off to Kanto. Lillie’s right, I don’t have the time.”

“Aww.” It’s Moon’s turn to pout. “I know you’re busy, but I was hoping you wouldn’t say that.”

“Not everyone can shirk their duties, _Champion_.”

“I talked it out with Kukui and the Elite Four already. I can take a month of absence from the League without my seat being given up.” She sticks out her tongue. “So don’t even think of sitting in my chair while I’m gone.”

Hau sticks his tongue out right back at her. “I’m gonna sit all over it and eat a big, fat malasada while I’m at it.”

Moon sputters, trying to contain her laughter—because she can just _see_ Hau gorging himself on malasadas in the Champion’s Chamber. She wipes at her wet eye and laughs, “Now I _really_ wish you were coming.”

“Why?” Hau lifts an eyebrow. “You nervous about spending some alone time with Gladion?”

The sudden shift catches her off-guard, and she can feel her face going red. “W-what are you talking about, Hau?”

He wiggles his eyebrows, and his grin is even huger, somehow. “You know what I mean, Mo—hrmph!”

Moon shoves the last malasada into his mouth. “What was that? Couldn’t hear you.”

Hau bites into the malasada and swallows it. “Calm down, jeez.” He’s still smiling. “I was just teasing you.”

Moon crosses her arms. “Just finish your malasada so we can go.”

He laughs. “Okay, boss.”

* * *

 

Moon fiddles with her phone as the afternoon grows later. She opens up her chat with Gladion, which is filled only with matter-of-fact details about their flight and where they’ll meet up beforehand. The last text she sent was _My dad’ll pick us up from the Saffron airport and we’ll stay at his place the first night,_ to which Gladion simply wrote _ok._

She sighs through her nose. _My mom’s inviting you do dinner but you don’t have to come if you don’t want to,_ she types, but she hesitates to send it. The thought of Gladion being in her house is a strange thought, but not unwelcome—and then she remembers her mother’s sly smile, and her face flames.

“No, no, no,” she mutters, deleting her unsent message. She drops her phone into her bag and flops back onto the grass. She leans her head back and surveys the yard, where her pokemon are enjoying the sunny weather—

“Moon-zzt!” Rotom quickly buzzes over, a distressed emoticon flashing on his screen. “It’s Bewear! Bewear!”

“Bewear!” She leaps to her feet, rushing toward her giant pink panda-bear as it starts to wander after one of the neighbors. “Gentle, gentle!”

* * *

 

With the amount of people coming in and out of Alola each day, the Akala Airport is incredibly crowded. Moon wanders inside through the crowd of weary and excited travelers, keeping her eyes peeled. Her phone buzzes in her hand, and she looks down. The message is from Hau.

_WAIT I HAVE THINGS 4 LILLIE IM ALMOST THERE_

“Really, Hau?” she groans, and then darts off toward the right side of the entrance so she doesn’t have to go in. She slides between the people, moving almost expertly, and then she bumps straight into someone.

“Ah, sorry,” she blurts just as Gladion says, “Moon?”

She stares up at him for a second. Then she feels her face start to burn. “S-sorry,” she blurts again. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” He puts his hands on his hips and gives her one of his disapproving stares. “You should really watch where you’re going, you know.”

Rotom suddenly beeps and rises from his snug pocket in her bag up over their heads. “Hau’zzt coming, Hau’zzt coming!”

“Hey, Rotom!” Hau calls, and then a moment later, he appears through the crowd. He’s out of breath, but smiling like always.

Gladion frowns. “You’re not coming, are you?” he says, and it comes out a bit harsh.

“Nope, just here to deliver some goods,” Hau replies. He puts his bag between his knees so he can pull out his gifts and give them to Moon. “Take Lillie this repel, I don’t want her to have to keep buying them. And this letter—and here!” He shoves a grease-stained paper bag into Moon’s hands. “It’s a big malasada!”

“All right, Hau, calm down,” Moon says, laughing, her hands full. She manages to put everything in her carry-on somehow, and then Hau comes at her with a tight hug.

“Be careful out there, okay?” he says.

Gladion huffs and puts his hands on his hips. “You’re really clingy, you know that? She’s the Champion, she can handle herself.”

Hau just grins when he pulls away from Moon. “ _I’m_ clingy?” he says, but then continues without pause. “Moon, really, don’t be gone for too long! I will seriously go for your seat.”

Moon shakes her head. “Train hard while I’m gone, Hau. You’ll need it if you really want my seat.”

He flashes her his trademark bright smile. “No need to worry about that!”

Gladion glances at the growing crowd of people making their way inside. “We should get through security, Moon.”

“All right,” she says, and Rotom returns to her bag. Gladion leads the way toward the entrance, and ultimately the obnoxiously long queue to get their bags checked. Moon turns back and waves wildly at Hau. “Bring my mom some malasadas for me!”

“You got it!” Hau laughs, waving back.

When Moon turns back to Gladion, he’s shaking his head. “You guys are embarrassing.” Instead of the words being unkindly, they come off rather exasperated, and Moon laughs.

“You’re the one who decided to stick around and wait for us to finish.”

He scoffs, but looks away. “Can’t have you getting lost before we even get there.”

She just laughs again. “You forget, Kanto’s where I’m from.”

Gladion shoves his hands in his pockets as they queue up in line. “Why else would your dad be there?”

A jolt of realization shoots through her. _Gladion’s going to meet my dad_.

When she doesn’t reply, Gladion looks back at her, an eyebrow raised quizzically. “Something wrong?”

“Huh?” Moon shakes her head to snap out of it. “Oh. Nothing. Just thinking about my dad. Haven’t seen him in a while. Anyway,” she adds quickly. “Have you ever been outside of Alola?”

Gladion doesn’t seem satisfied with the answer, and her obvious beating around the bush, but he doesn’t push her. “I haven’t. Never even been on a plane before, only boats.”

“The only fun part is taking off and landing,” Moon says. “The in-flight movies are okay. Oh, it’s probably good to get a nap in for the time change.”

“All right.”

His clipped answer throws Moon off again, and she doesn’t really know how to continue the conversation at the moment. They fall into silence as they continue through the line, and when they eventually get through security, they hurry toward their gate.

Roughly half an hour later, they shuffle through another line to get on the plane. Being Champion and the current head of the Aether Foundation have their perks; Moon lets Gladion have the window seat for his first-ever plane ride before flopping down into the comfy first-class seat next to his.

“Excited?” Moon asks as she turns off her cell phone. She wonders if Rotom has any sort of airplane mode and pulls him out of her bag.

“Incredibly,” Gladion says, voice edged with sarcasm.

Moon looks over to him to see that he’s bouncing one of his legs while his chin rests on a fist. He’s scowling.

She blinks. “Gladion? Are you nervous about flying?”

“People fly all the time,” he says, but he doesn’t say _no_.

“Let’s watch a movie,” she says, tapping on the screen that sits on the back of the seat in front of her. If it were anything less than the fear of flying—and falling—she might’ve tried to tease him out of it, but she wasn’t that cruel. “They have new ones, like _Beauty and the Bewear,_ but, uh, maybe you don’t like that stuff. There’s _Captain Braviary, Ariados-man_ … Anything look interesting?”

Gladion’s still tapping his foot, but less quickly now. “Sure, I guess,” he says, looking out the window and away from her.

“Okay…” She ends up clicking _Captain Braviary_ and brings it up on Gladion’s screen too. She hands him his earbuds, and he accepts them with a nod.

They get through the opening of the movie before the feed cuts out to inform them that _Alolan Airlines thanks you for flying with us today_ and how to put on oxygen masks and make an emergency exit, all while the plane taxies along the runway. Gladion starts tapping his finger against his armrest, and Moon’s brain starts to run on overdrive.

_What if he gets all scared? Have I ever seen him scared? I’ve seen him angry. And…maybe he was scared under all that? No, he was scared when we were going to rescue Lillie. But this is different! I don’t know what to do!_

A few minutes later, the plane makes a final turn. It stops for a moment, and then the engines blast, and the plane starts to rocket forward. Gladion grabs his armrests and bites his lip, then quickly looks away from Moon—which means he’s looking out the window.

“J-just watch, this is the cool part,” Moon says, leaning toward him. “All the houses get smaller once we’re in the air. You feel like Rayquaza or something.”

Gladion doesn’t answer, keeping his body turned from her. The plane lifts from the ground, and she sees his knuckles whiten as he grips the armrest harder.

Moon stays quiet, waiting. The ground gets farther and farther below them, the houses and cities quickly turning into dots. The islands stay large, and when they get over the ocean, Moon can spot a boat or two in the waves.

Finally, they start to level out. Gladion lets out a breath, then lowers his head. His bangs cover his face from her view. “…Sorry about that. Thank you.”

“N-no, don’t worry about it,” she says, waving it off. “The first time is nerve-wracking for everyone.”

“I guess so,” he says, and then out of nowhere, he lets out a small laugh, and Moon can see the slight smile making its way onto his face. “I don’t exactly feel like Rayquaza, though.”

Moon smiles, relieved. “That’s okay.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd have updated sooner but I had other things to work on. I'd update quickly but I'm going on a trip and I won't be back for two and a half weeks whoops

Moon’s mind is hazy with sleep. She groans slightly and presses her cheek harder against her pillow, searching for more comfort. But then, her pillow shifts.

She blinks open her eyes, taking a moment to adjust to the light of the cabin. Soft breathing sounds nearby, and realization clicks into place in her mind.

She fell asleep on Gladion’s shoulder.

Moon cheeks heat up and she tenses, then slowly pulls away to sit upright. Gladion doesn’t move. He’s leaning back in his chair, head slightly turned away. His mouth hangs open as he snores lightly.

Embarrassment fills her, and she feels like she’s intruding on his space. She looks away and busies herself with checking the flight information on the screen. They’re nearly to Kanto, and the plane has already started its descent.

Moon decides to leave Gladion asleep, and he actually stays that way until the wheels touch down on the tarmac. He jerks awake, letting out a startled “Wha?!” that sends Moon into a laughing fit.

Gladion freezes, staring at her with wide eyes. He must be overwhelmed, she realizes, but she can’t stop laughing. She covers her mouth and doubles over, and sometimes her laughs come out as snorts.

She can  _ hear _ the scowl in his voice when he says, “Will you cut that out?”

“S-sorry,” she says, and she hiccups. “I—I just…” She sits back up and takes a breath, but the sight of Gladion’s red face and narrowed eyes makes her giggle again. “I’m s-sorry…!”

He crosses his arms—the plane has slowed to a crawl now, so he no longer needs to hold on for dear life—and huffs. “Why did I come with you again?”

Finally, Moon manages to find her breath. “It’s more fun this way?”

Gladion rolls his eyes and mutters under his breath. Moon just shakes her head and takes out her phone and turns it on. Several messages come through, two from Hau, one from her mother, and the last from her father. She opens up the one from her father first.

“My dad’s already waiting for us at the exit,” she says before quickly sending a text back to say that they landed.

They gather their belongings and wait for the plane to park. Moon takes Rotom off of airplane mode and the little guy becomes much more energetic, floating around to look out the window and pulling up information from the web about Saffron.

“The current temperature izzt seventy degreezzzt Fahrenheit, or twenty-one degreezzzt Celciuzzt. The local time is five forty-seven in the evening!” Rotom spins around, showing a shouting emoticon on its surface. “This izzt exciting!”

Moon yawns. Despite her nap, the long flight has tired her out. “How are you so energetic?”

“My thoughts exactly,” Gladion grumbles.

Rotom just lets out a static-y giggle and spins again. “I’ve made a new folder for picurezzt!  _ Rotom’zzt First Trip to Kanto _ .”

Moon plucks him out of the air and puts him in his pocket on the side of her bag. “Have you started taking pictures yet, Rotom?” she asks. The plane comes to a stop, and when the seatbelt sign turns off, she unbuckles and gets into the isle, eager to stretch her legs.

“Of course-zzt!”

“How do you not end up turning it off or something?” Gladion asks, standing as well. He’s still stuck in the space for the seats, so he has to duck his head to keep from hitting the overhead compartment.

“He’s interesting, and pretty helpful when he wants to be.” Moon smiles, but she yawns again. And then, her stomach growls loudly.

“What was that?” Gladion asks pointedly.

“A natural reaction to being hungry,” Moon says, but in her head, she’s cursing her stomach and scrambling for a way to turn around the embarrassment. “It happens to everyone.”

He rolls his eyes. “They’re opening the door. Let’s get going.”

“Okay,” she says, then leads the way out. She nearly trips, and Gladion  _snorts_. She kind of wants to die, and hurriedly tries to push away the feeling.

They head to the baggage claim to wait for the small suitcase Moon’s mother gave her to bring to her father. Gladion puts his hands in his pockets and watches the other people in the airport, while Moon taps her toe against the floor.

“Hey, Moon?”

Moon glances at him and bounces on her toes. “What is it?”

He glances toward the conveyor-belt when it suddenly jerks to life. Moon turns her attention to it too, not wanting to miss the suitcase.

Gladion scratches the back of his neck. “…What’s your dad like?”

Moon shrugs. “He works a lot. He’s still here in Kanto because it costs so much money to live in Alola and he hasn’t been able to really get a transfer yet. He’s kind of…” She snaps her fingers, trying to think of the right word. “Not incompetent by any means, but he does things like order out all the time and not always get the healthiest food to eat. We get along really well and everything, but sometimes he can be overbearing.

“Other than that…” Moon stops talking for a moment to reach for her suitcase before it drifts by on the conveyor-belt. “He’s a pretty nice and friendly guy.”

Gladion is silent for a moment, as if thinking. “Something wrong?” Moon says as she extends the handle on the suitcase.

Gladion shakes his head, and together the two start toward the exit. “Just a bit tired.”

“Even though you took that nap?” Moon teases, and suddenly she can see a bit of pink on his cheek. 

She looks away quickly.  _ Did he notice me falling asleep on him? He must have… Great, I’m already embarrassed and he hasn’t even met my dad yet. _

Moon turns her attention to their surroundings as they come out into the exit area. “Let’s see… Oh! Dad!”

A middle-aged man with a thin head of black hair and a round stomach waves at her from near a window. Moon breaks out into a run, dropping the suitcase with a clatter. She rushes into her father’s arms, and he hugs her tight. He smells like coffee and the stale air of his office.

“Hey, sweetie,” he says, then kisses the top of her head. “I’ve missed you.”

An almost overwhelming feeling crashes over her, making her lose her breath for a moment. “I’ve missed you too.”

He lets her go, and she pulls away. Belatedly, she remembers Gladion, and she turns to see that he’s caught up to her; he pulls along her forgotten suitcase behind him. 

“Ah… Sorry for making you get that,” she says, moving forward to take it.

“No, it’s fine,” he says, waving her off. “I’ve got it.”

She feels like there was more to what he was going to say, like maybe a sarcastic retort that would just end up making her laugh. She looks from him to her father, and then her nervousness comes back all at once and she tries to force it down. 

“Dad, this is Gladion.” She gestures to Gladion rather awkwardly, and then to her father. “Gladion, this is my dad.”

“Call me Samuel,” her father says, sticking out his hand. Gladion nods and returns the handshake, a quick but firm one. “You’re the boy who’s currently running that foundation, right?”

Gladion nods. “With a lot of help, for which I’m grateful for,” he says. It shocks Moon, how polite he’s being. “And thank you in advance, for tonight. I appreciate it.”

“It’s no problem at all. Come on,” Samuel says, gesturing. “It’s getting late, you must be hungry.”

* * *

 

Her father drives them along a short stretch of highway into the main city, and then through a zigzag of Saffron’s busy streets. The sun is setting, and the lights and neon signs are starting to glow in the gathering darkness; Moon finds herself grinning at all the old sights that she recognizes, like the pizza shop on the corner of Goldenrod Avenue and Violet Street, and from a distance she catches sight of her old school. She points it all out, and thanks to the traffic, Gladion gets a clear view of them from the backseat without missing out on anything. 

Rotom doesn't miss out on anything, either. Constant clicks can be heard from the backseat when he takes pictures, though Moon scolded him earlier to turn off the flash. At least now that he's occupied, he isn't chattering, which is a nice change of pace.

Samuel keeps his eyes on the road, but directs his question over his shoulder. “Gladion, have you ever been to Kanto?”

“No, I haven’t.” Moon glances back to see that he’s looking out the window, eyes on the buildings that are far taller than any found in Alola. “...It’s busy here.”

Samuel laughs. “That’s putting it lightly. I usually have to take the trains everywhere because it’s so crowded. I don’t remember the last time I drove!”

“Very reassuring, Dad,” Moon says. She turns around fully to look at Gladion. “Don’t worry, we’re almost there.”

Gladion nods, his green eyes softening a bit in relief. 

“Hey, I’m a good driver!” Samuel insists, but he’s laughing a bit. “I’ve been driving for longer than you’ve been alive.”

“Like I haven’t heard that before.” Moon rolls her eyes while still facing Gladion, and he smirks. She turns back to sit properly in her chair as her father turns the right, into a parking garage. She can still see Gladion’s smile when she blinks.

After they park the car, they head into the adjoining apartment complex. It’s been almost two years since she’s been here, but Moon can remember which way leads to her babysitter’s, which floor her friend Lacey lived on before she went on her pokemon journey. She leads the way up toward their--well, her father’s--apartment, and when Samuel puts the key in the lock she can hear barking coming from inside.

“Growly!” she cries when he opens the door and her dad’s old Growlithe rushes out to greet her. Growly sniffs her, wagging his tail and giving a gruff bark. Moon picks him up and rubs his graying head. 

“He’s missed you,” her father says as he leads the way inside.

“Of course he has, he loves me,” Moon says, giving the old dog a kiss on the head. When they get to the living room, she turns to Gladion and holds out the pokemon. “Say hello to Growly!”

Gladion looks so out of place in her old home, like he doesn’t know what to do with himself, but a small smile appears on his lips as he reaches out to let the Growlithe sniff his hand. “Let me guess, you named him?”

“Why yes, I did,” Moon says proudly.

“She was six,” Samuel says. He’s at the refrigerator now, and Moon is hardly surprised to see him pull out a frozen pizza. “It was  _ my _ birthday, too. I wanted to name him Stan.”

Gladion’s eyebrows knit together, and Moon clarifies: “Sam and Stan. He wanted them to rhyme...well, sort of.” She rolls her eyes pointedly and Gladion’s smile grows just a bit wider. 

She’s definitely not used to the sight, but it makes her heart flutter.

“They let you have pokemon in the apartment?” Gladion asks. He takes Growly from Moon when she prompts him to, and the dog pokemon leans his head up to lick at his chin. 

“Only smaller ones,” Samuel says as he puts the frozen pizza in the oven. He didn’t even wait for it to finish preheating. “That’s why we kept Growly from evolving. An Arcanine would be rather hard to fit in here, even with a pokeball handy.”

“I see,” Gladion says, and his hand finds Growly’s collar, thumb rubbing over the everstone attached to it. He can’t say anything else, because suddenly Growly puts his paws on his chest and reaches up to lick all over Gladion’s cheeks. He laughs, then scratches the Growlithe’s back. Moon grins at the sight, even though she can barely believe she just heard Gladion  _ laugh _ .

“Dad, can I let out my pokemon?” she asks.

“Not the big ones--like that bear pokemon you have.”

“I’m sure he’d love to hug you,” she jokes, but doesn’t grab Bewear’s pokeball. She lets out her smaller pokemon for now: Raichu, Marowak, and Lycanroc. She hesitates for a moment before letting out Nellie, too; she’s bigger than Lycanroc, but not terribly so.  _ Letting Nellie out for just a little bit shouldn’t be too bad. _

“Is this a Raichu?” Samuel asks, coming around the counter. He kneels down and pats Raichu’s head, and the mouse squeaks happily, rubbing his head back against her father’s hand. 

“Yeah, they evolve differently in Alola. Marowak do, too,” she says, and she reaches over to scratch her Marowak’s head. 

Without warning, Nellie lets out a _ woof _ and nudges Moon’s hand, but with enough force that the impact of her helmet stings. Moon hisses in pain, but tries to shake it off.

“Being impatient now, aren’t you?” she says, kneeling. “You’ve got to learn some manners, Nellie.”

Samuel’s eyes widen at the sight of Nellie. “What kind of pokemon is that?”

Moon opens her mouth, but she hesitates.

“It’s a very rare pokemon, called Type: Null,” Gladion says, putting Growly back down onto the floor. “It can’t be found in the wild. I gave this Null to Moon hoping that it’d be happy. It can only evolve through friendship.” He pauses, like he’s going to add something, but ends up not saying anything else.

“And the helmet?” Samuel reaches out, and Nellie hurries forward to be petted, nearly whacking his fingers. He scratches her chest, and she lets out a happy sigh.

“It’s a very strong pokemon,” Gladion explains. “To put it in Moon’s terms, it’s ‘got to learn some manners’ in order to use them correctly.”

Samuel frowns. “Seems a bit cruel all the same, don’t you think?” 

“It is.”

* * *

 

Raichu floats around the apartment, checking every nook and cranny. Marowak is more content to eat her dinner in silence, while Lycanroc and Growly sniff each other. Moon watches them for a moment as she eats her pizza, glad to see that her smallest pokemon, at least, are getting along with her old pet. Gladion opted not to let out his pokemon even when she invited him to, saying that he didn’t want to make the place too crowded. Even after putting Nellie back into her ball, Moon understands, especially when Raichu almost overturns a vase and Rotom has to steady it.

Her father’s always been the sort of person to have the TV on at all times--never blaring, but just on, usually showing sitcom reruns or the news. Moon is grateful, since the familiar hum is drowning out the silence. It’s hard to think of conversation topics when her father and Gladion are both at the table with her.

“Moon? Did you hear me?”

She blinks, looking toward her father. She didn’t notice earlier, but now he’s sitting properly in his chair to look at her rather than at the TV. It’s one of his more serious poses--not something that says  _ trouble _ , but something that says she should probably have heard him in the first place.

“Uh, sorry,” she says. “What was it?”

“I wanted to know what you’re planning to do after you get back to Alola,” he says. 

“Defend my title as the Champion,” she says, trying not to let her voice falter. “I’m doing a good job at it. Professor Kukui has me help him with his studies on pokemon moves all the time, too. Oh, I have to help look after the islands.”

“She does a very good job at it all,” Gladion adds. “She’s the strongest trainer Alola’s ever seen.”

Samuel’s eyes flick to Gladion, an unreadable expression in his gaze, but then he turns back to Moon and smiles. “You know I’m proud of you, Moon.”

_ But, _ she adds in her head.

“But,” he says. “I really think you should put in the time to apply to that college on the main island.”

Gladion pauses, his next bite of pizza almost to his mouth. He glances at Samuel, and then watches Moon carefully.

Frustration starts to well up in the pit of her stomach. She doesn’t want to have this conversation in the first place, and certainly not in front of a guest--certainly not in front of Gladion. “I don’t have the time now. And it’s not like I’m not saving money for when I do have the time.”

“It’s your decision, Moon,” her father says. “I just wanted to make sure you were thinking about it.”

_ That’s what you said when I was twelve and wanted to go on my pokemon journey, _ she thinks. She takes a bite of her pizza to keep her mouth shut.

Her father seems to understand--for once--that he should drop the topic. He nods toward the suitcase left beside the door. “What did your mother send me this time?”

She welcomes the change. “Just souvenirs, I think…”

* * *

 

After dinner, Samuel doesn’t keep them up. They let Gladion shower first while they set up the pull-out couch for him; then it’s Moon’s turn, and after she gets out, her father goes into the bathroom.

“Gladion?” Moon asks, peering around the corner into the living room. “You sure you’re okay out here?”

He was checking his phone; he looks up at her and she realizes this is the first time she’s seen him in sleeping clothes--a red sleeveless shirt and black sweatpants. It’s nothing special, nothing really surprising, but it makes her nervous all the same.  _ When exactly did Gladion start to make me nervous all the time?  _ She remembers how he looked while sleeping on the plane, and she hopes the dim lights hide her blush.

“I’m fine, don’t worry,” he says. He pauses and looks away, scratching the back of his neck. His voice becomes much quieter when he looks back at her, staring her right in the eyes. “Are you okay, after your dad talked to you like that?”

She blinks, confused. But then she remembers Lusamine, and the stories she heard about the disappearance of Gladion’s father. Perhaps he just isn't used to how other people interacted with their parents. The thought pangs her heart.

She gives Gladion a small smile. “Yeah. It’s frustrating, but it’s normal. I mean… he just doesn’t want me to only battle, you know? In case something happens. He’s just worried.”

Gladion frowns, like he’s skeptical. But then he shakes his head. “Of course. That makes sense.” He looks away. “...I just wanted to make sure.”

“...Thank you,” Moon says, touched. She wants to say something more than just that, but she can’t get anything out of her mouth other than “Goodnight.”

He nods. “Goodnight, Moon.”

She gives him a small wave and then retreats to her room, where her smaller pokemon are already waiting for her on the bed--Rotom having already plugged himself into a wall outlet, his eyes closed while small Z's float on his screen. She crawls under the covers and flops onto her pillow before tugging Raichu close.

"What's wrong with me?" she murmurs into his fur. 

Her thoughts are filled to the brim until she falls asleep, and even after.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> went to Tokyo while I was on my trip. the subway scene is completely based on my experience (although there wasn't a cute guy with me, only cute friends)

Moon mumbles as she hands her father a small wad of cash. “Sorry for all the scratches in the floor.”

Samuel shakes his head, but thankfully he isn't angry. “What made you think letting out Nellie yesterday was a good idea with those claws of hers?”

She scratches her cheek, trying vainly to smile everything off. “I just wanted you to meet her, is all.”

They're standing in one of Saffron’s numerous subway stations, near one of the wickets but out of the way of the men and women on their way to work, and even the younger, uniform-clad kids going to school. The area is clean, but the fluorescent lights and cacophony of announcements are distracting. She can tell that Gladion is trying to pay attention to the conversation, but his eyes keep flickering toward the multitude of people like he's never seen any before.

Samuel smiles and gives Moon a hug. “Be careful, and stay in touch. Come see me again before you leave.”

She gives him a tight squeeze back. “Have a good day at work.”

He nods and pats her head. Then, he extends his hand toward Gladion. “It was good to meet you. You seem like a good man.”

Gladion's eyes widen a little as he accepts the handshake. “Thank you...sir.”

“Have a good time,” Samuel says to them both, and then he goes through the wicket with his card and disappears into the crowd.

“I didn't realize Nellie's claws would leave dents like that,” Moon says with an embarrassed chuckle.

“It’s not like you can't pay for it. You've certainly taken plenty of my prize money.” Gladion puts his hands on his hips. “So, are we gonna ride one of these trains?”

“Yep! Got your ticket?”

Moon leads him through the wicket, making sure he doesn't forget to take his ticket back. The subway lines go in several directions, but they're color-coded, and Moon easily finds the northbound line.

“I lived close enough to walk to school, but I know these like the back of my hand.” Moon stops behind a yellow line; a few feet away, the platform disappears, leaving a straight drop to the tracks. “This will take us to the north station, and we can either walk up the route, or take the Kanto Railway line to Cerulean.”

Gladion shrugs. “I don't mind walking. It's cheaper, isn't it?”

“A heck of a lot longer, too.” Moon grins. “And it's full of trainers.”

Gladion smiles at that. The train pulls into the station, and the wind tosses her hair around. She looks away and curls the loose strands behind her ear.

The train is already full of people. No seats are free either, so they shuffle inside, Moon turning around to make sure Gladion is okay. He nods and grabs onto one of the overhead handles, but before he can get too comfortable, someone pushes into him to make space for the rest of the oncoming passengers.

Gladion lurches forward, eyes wide with surprise. He manages to catch himself on another handrail, but not before he's pushed against Moon.

“S-sorry,” he says, standing as straight as possible when three other people are pushed against his back. He stands a few inches taller than her, so that her eyes are level with his jawline. “...I can't move.”

An older businesswoman is squished against Moon’s side, but thankfully Moon’s standing in a corner. Her hand snakes out to grab onto a bar beside the doors. “This is normal,” she says, hoping that she isn't blushing. He smells like soap and, fittingly enough, Silvally. “It'll thin out eventually.”

The train starts to move, and Gladion’s knuckles turn white as he grips the overhead handles for dear life. The car jerks slightly, and his foot darts to another spot to regain his balance--and that spot happens to be right on Moon’s foot.

“Ow!”

“You okay?” He hurriedly moves his foot back to its original spot. “I'm sorry.”

“It's fine,” she says, able to ignore the mild stinging in her toe. “Don't worry--with this many people around, you won't fall.”

Gladion nods, but otherwise doesn't comment. He looks away, as if suddenly interested in the ads on the walls. Moon turns her head downward, and her gaze catches sight of his exposed collarbone.

They stay that way for ten minutes; even when the train stops to let off passengers, more come on. Finally, a good number of people all depart at once, and Gladion lets out a sigh of relief as he takes a couple steps backward. He pinches the bridge of his nose. “How much longer?”

“Just one more stop,” she says. He nods, and a few moments later, the announcement calls out the last stop for the northbound train, and they exit through the doors.

It isn't until they pass through the wicket and go up the stairs into the outside world that Gladion speaks: “Never put me on a train ever again.”

Moon would've laughed if she weren't so embarrassed herself. “I think we can make it to Cerulean by nightfall, or at least get there in the morning.”

“All right,” Gladion says. He takes a look around before his gaze falls on the North Saffron Gate, which is more of a giant archway over a road and walkway for travellers. “I take it we go that way.”

“You’re smarter than you look,” Moon jokes, leading the way.

Route Five is fairly straightforward, although it’s entirely uphill to get to Cerulean City. This is the reason that the Cerulean-Saffron railway on the eastern side of the route stands beside the highway, for those travelers who can’t afford cars or bikes. The railway and highway sit on cement stilts high above the edge of the forest so as to interfere as little as possible with pokemon habitats, leaving the footpath mostly untouched as well, aside from trainers and the recently-established pokemon center halfway up the route.

Moon considers the rocky upward path for a moment, and then grabs a couple pokeballs from her side pocket, releasing Lycanroc and Nellie. Lycanroc lets out a small bark and sets to sniffing her way up the path, interested in all the different smells. Nellie wags her fish tail and looks around, prancing in place like she’s not sure which way to go.

“We’re just going for a walk today, Nellie.” Moon fishes something from her pocket and holds it out to the pokemon. “Look, I found this in my old room. Do you like it?”

It’s a necklace with a short string for a chain; the pendant is a small bell, and Moon shakes it to let out the small ringing noise. Nellie looks at it curiously, wagging her tail even more. Moon smiles and ties it to one of the protrusions on Nellie’s helmet, making sure it doesn’t hang down very far.

“What is that?” Gladion asks.

Moon shrugs. “I just thought she’d like it.”

Nellie shakes her whole body like she’s wet, and the bell chimes. She lets out a playful _woof_ and leaps around like an excited puppy pokemon, and the bell rings and rings. Moon laughs.

Gladion watches for a moment, and then scoffs. But he still takes a pokeball from his pack and lets out his Lucario and gives it a pat between the ears.

“Just a little walk, buddy,” he says, and he starts to lead the way up the slope.

Most of the morning walk is passed with easy small talk. A few Kantonian Rattata and Meowth scurry through the grass and Moon points them out. A trainer going in the opposite direction gawks at Gladion’s Lucario and challenges him to a one-on-one; despite the type disadvantage, Gladion’s Lucario gives the trainer’s Machoke a good fight before pinning it into the dirt.

“You’ve trained Lucario really well,” Moon says after they wave goodbye to the trainer and continue on the upward path.

“I caught him as a Riolu in Poni Grove,” Gladion explains, fishing a poke bean out of his bag to give to Lucario. The pokemon lets out a small cheer of joy and starts to nibble on it. “I was lucky he liked me from the start.”

Moon glances around to make sure Nellie and Lycanroc are still close by; Lycanroc is good about staying close, but Nellie is still bouncing everywhere, unperturbed by the uphill climb. “Poni Grove? But you had Lucario before you did the island challenge, and Poni Grove is off-limits to those who haven’t completed it.”

Gladion shrugs, smirking. “Not if you don’t get caught.”

“That’s trespassing!” she says with a mock gasp.

“Not the worst thing I’ve done.” He says it casually, like a joke, but all at once he goes quiet. He gives Lucario another scratch between the ears.

Moon falters when she sees his expression fall. “Hey, Rotom,” she says, scrambling to cover up the awkward quiet. “What time is it?”

Rotom flies out of his pocket and twirls through the air, flashing an analog clock on his screen that reads 13:09. “Time for lunch-zzt, please!”

“All right, all right,” Moon says. She points off toward the side of the route, where there’s a patch of short grass. “Let’s go over there.”

Gladion agrees, and they make quick work of getting out some food for their pokemon and themselves--Moon tosses Rotom a couple of batteries, and he blabs on happily while he drains their energy.

Moon lets out the rest of her team of six, and Gladion his other four. The pokemon greet each other and dig into the food, and Moon leans back on one hand and bites into a sandwich, content.

“Look,” she says suddenly, and Gladion follows her line of sight.

Nellie runs up to Silvally. She’s only about half its size, but she isn’t intimidated in the slightest; she sits and reaches up with one of her front claws, as if waving, and she barks.

Silvally jumps and barks as well, and it’s such a joyous expression that it leaves Moon speechless, realizing that this is the first time the two pokemon have met each other outside of a laboratory. It wags its tail and sniffs at Nellie, then bites at one of the rods protruding from her helmet.

Gladion surges to his feet. “Silvally! Stop!”

Moon drops her sandwich and stands, confused, but Gladion has already rushed toward their pokemon. Silvally lets go of Nellie’s helmet and quirks its head at Gladion, but the boy ignores it for the moment and checks the spot where Silvally bit down on Nellie’s helmet.

“What’s wrong?” Moon’s right beside him a moment later, reaching out a hand to pet Nellie and keep her calm.

Gladion traces his fingers over the bite mark Silvally left in the metal. His hands shake slightly. “It’s...fine. We just--the helmet can’t come off. Nellie has to do it herself.”

Moon’s mind races back to the time they were storming the Aether Foundation, when she was reading through the secret files on the Beast Killers. “If it comes off too soon, she could…”

Gladion nods. “Go berserk, yes.”

He sighs and gives Nellie a pat before standing and turning to Silvally. “Sorry, buddy,” he says softly, patting its neck. Silvally nudges his cheek before giving licking the entire left half of his face. Gladion only lets out a small laugh and continues to pet it.

Nellie bumps Moon’s forehead, gently for once, and lets out a little whimper. Moon puts on her best smile and scratches Nellie’s side. “You can play with Silvally all you want, but this thing,” she says, knocking lightly on the helmet, “can’t come off just yet. I’m sorry, girl.”

Nellie whines. Moon wants to cry.

* * *

 

Moon’s mind is full the rest of the afternoon. Gladion grows quiet too, his eyes faraway, so not much is spoken between them until the sun starts to set. They passed the pokemon center in the middle of the afternoon, so they opted to rest for the night in sleeping bags. Moon lets out her Marowak and helps it set up a fire to watch over for the night; Gladion lets out Crobat and Silvally, and the bat pokemon goes out to fly for food while Silvally immediately plops down beside Gladion’s sleeping bag.

Moon lets out Raichu as well before she climbs into her bag. The electric type snuggles right up next to her and lets out a yawn.

They’re off the road, into the trees, but through the leaves overhead she can see the stars and the bright half-moon. For the past year, the moon has always made her think of Lillie.

 _For the first time in a year,_ she realizes. She’ll see Lillie, her best friend, for the first time in a year. _Maybe tomorrow._

Her excitement starts to bubble up. She turns her head to look at Gladion. He lays with his arms folded behind his head as he stares up at the sky. Silvally rests its head on his chest.

It strikes Moon that since they’ve come to Kanto, he hasn’t spoken once about his sister.

She hesitates. “Gladion?”

He glances at her. “What?”

“Why...” She steadies herself. “Why do you think Lillie asked us to come?”

Gladion looks back up at the sky. “I dunno.” There’s an edge to his voice. “Could be anything.”

Moon wracks her brain. She doesn't understand why he's being so hostile. "Maybe she’s got her first pokemon?"

“Maybe,” he says like he doesn’t believe her. He closes his eyes. “I’m tired.”

A flash of irritation courses through her. And hurt; he hasn't acted hostile toward her in a long time. “Shouldn’t you be _excited_ to see your sister?” she blurts.

Gladion scowls and turns away, causing Silvally to lift its head from his chest. “Will you leave me alone?”

Moon sits up, and Raichu squeaks, clinging to her shirt. “What’s your deal all of a sudden?”

He doesn’t answer.

“Fine, be that way.” Moon huffs and lays back down, turning away from him. Raichu rubs his head against her cheek and wraps his tail around her arm. The motions help her calm down, but she still doesn’t find sleep for a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to put this out there to readers who may be triggered by the child abuse elements in Sun and Moon:
> 
> (Most likely) In the next chapter, Lusamine is going to appear. She'll have a big role in this story, if the story goes how my thoughts are right now. (This story in general is going to get more substantial and not just fluff, whoops.)
> 
> Believe me, in no way am I ever going to say that Lusamine's abuse toward her children is okay. Someone very close to me was a victim of child abuse and suffers to this day from PTSD, and they're only ever happy that they don't have contact with their parents anymore. That being said, Lusamine's character and storyline was very interesting to me (especially Lillie refusing to take Lusamine's abuse anymore but still willing to help her), and I do want to approach writing about her. Please understand that I will be doing my best, and that the opinions of the characters aren't always the opinions of the author and so on. 
> 
> That being said, if Lusamine's being in this fic upsets you, I don't blame you for not reading any further. I will be updating the tags to include what I will/may be addressing. Thank you.


End file.
